“Funny?”
“Uh…I could just run my hands through your hair if that’s the problem,” she offered, giggling as her hands landed on both sides of my face, traveling into my hair and ruffling it like a child’s.
Despite myself, I joined in on her laughter.
“You drive me crazy,” I confessed, shaking my head as she let go of my hair.
I dropped a kiss on her forehead as I released her, and she led the way out of the bedroom.
We were a few feet away from the kitchen when I got a notification that someone was in the elevator.
“Seems Yuri is here,” I announced.
“Oh…okay,” Isabella commented, going into the kitchen as I turned towards the doorway.
“Must be an urgent update. We won’t be long.”
“Hm.”
Yuri met me at the door.
“Good morning, boss.”
“Any news?”
“Yes, boss,” he stated. “Marco was spotted with the Italian don. It was a sort of secret meeting.”
“He didn’t take our warning to stop his double-dealing seriously,” I mused.
“Apparently not, boss. He’s still affiliated with them, even while he hides away from us.”
“Marco will pay.”
Chapter Thirteen
Isabella’s POV
Since the minor attack, Mikhail had been extra careful around me. No strange sound or occurrence escaped his notice. I couldn’t help but feel a bit valued, like we weren’t just attracted to each other’s bodies. His looks were longer, and his kisses were softer.
At the same time, he was more tense. His fuse seemed to have gotten even shorter. Every hiccup with his men pissed him off. Every unanswered question from me drove him wild.
Yet, a tiny fiber of me couldn’t stop chalking it all up to him being worried for me. I couldn’t shake the possibility of him worrying about me being in harm’s way.
The issue was that these assumptions softened me a little.
But, of course, they weren’t strong enough to deter me from my plans. Maybe they made it a teeny weeny bit harder. I couldn’t deny it. The thought of ruining Mikhail didn’t always feel good. In fact, there were times when I wondered if I would go through with the plan, after all. It was going deeper than attraction; I just didn’t know what it was yet.
I won’t be stopped, no matter what.
This was the conclusion I came to as I waited by the edge of the tub for the water to get to the perfect temperature. A warm bath was exactly what I needed as I sorted through my feelings.
A sound from the bathroom door startled me, and I turned my head towards it instantly, alert.
“Oh, there you are,” Mikhail remarked, a playful smirk on his face.
Seeing the intruder was none other than Mikhail didn’t make me lower my guard. I was practically naked, after all. While he was barefoot in black trousers and a slightly crinkled white shirt with rolled-up sleeves.
I stood, dragging the ends of my white silk robe closer to my body.
